Silt still wants Moore

Recall initiator not worried about working with mayor

Click to Enlarge Browse and Buy Post Independent Photos Silt Mayor Dave Moore holds his 7-month-old granddaughter, Melanie Zeller, as he is congratulated with a handshake from Rifle Mayor Keith Lambert Tuesday evening. Friends and family gathered at the Moore residence, where they received the election results, which included a victory for the mayor’s no recall campaign. Kelley Cox/Post Independent

By Heidi Rice
Post Independent Staff
Glenwood Springs, CO Colorado
April 2, 2008

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SILT, Colorado — “How ’bout them Nuggets?” was the first thing Silt Town Clerk Sheila McIntyre asked Mayor Dave Moore when she called him at home Tuesday night.

Moore was sitting with about 12 of his friends waiting for the results of the municipal election that would tell him whether he was being recalled as the mayor of Silt.

As it turned out, the Denver Nuggets basketball team ended up beating the Phoenix Suns, and Moore beat his recall by a vote of 289-227.

“I wasn’t surprised (by the results), but I was happy,” Moore said shortly after hearing the results. “There was a little nervousness, but I think my wife was more nervous than I was.”

Moore’s wife, Sherree, said she wasn’t surprised that her husband and McIntyre spoke about sports before discussing the recall results.

“Dave and Sheila always talk about the Nuggets — they always have,” Sherree Moore said. “It’s kind of their thing. But when things got stressful with all this recall business, I noticed that they quit talking about the Nuggets so much. So when she called tonight with the results and asked him about the Nuggets first thing, I took that as a good sign. And I was right!”

The recall effort was instigated by Silt Mayor Pro Tem Tod Tibbetts nearly a year ago, who claimed that Moore, who was elected in April 2006, had violated numerous state statutes, local ordinances and codes of conduct in his personal and professional business endeavors.

Moore has admitted to making some “procedural” errors as a first-time mayor, but nothing intentional.

Had Moore been recalled, former town administrator Rick Aluise was the only candidate running to replace him.

After hearing the results, Tibbetts said that he still felt the election results showed that there were some concerns about Moore.

“All in all, it was a good election,” he said. “I still think the recall election was close enough because about 50 percent people voted (against Moore.)”

Yet Tibbetts says he doesn’t think the issue will affect his relationship with Moore on the Silt Town Board.

“I don’t see it as being an issue,” Tibbetts said. “The basis for the recall wasn’t personal.”

Moore says he’s just glad the whole year-long saga is over.

“Was the recall necessary and beneficial? No. We’ve all suffered — my friends, my family, the town of Silt and possibly my reputation,” Moore said. “It’s been quite a stressful time, and I just hope it’s all over. I ask the members of the recall committee to put aside their personal feelings and redirect their thinking to put the town of Silt back together again.”